KARACHI, Pakistan — Violent confrontations between Pakistani authorities and demonstrators outside the U.S. consulate in Karachi resulted in nine fatalities on Sunday, as crowds responded to reports that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in strikes by U.S. and Israeli forces against Iran.
Similar demonstrations took place near Baghdad’s Green Zone in Iraq, where the American Embassy is situated, as supporters of Iran expressed their outrage.
Both Pakistan and Iraq contain the world’s second and third largest populations of Shi’ite Muslims, following Iran itself.
In Karachi, demonstrators managed to breach the exterior barrier of the consulate before being repelled by security forces, according to a local government representative. The crowd ignited a car near the facility’s main entrance during the confrontation with police.
Authorities confirmed that nine individuals lost their lives during these violent encounters.
News reporters on the scene documented the sound of weapons fire and witnessed law enforcement deploying tear gas throughout the area surrounding the diplomatic compound. Video evidence captured flames burning under a bridge in the vicinity.
Officials reported no injuries from the street violence itself.
Neither the Karachi consulate nor the U.S. Embassy press office in Islamabad provided responses to media inquiries.
Demonstrations of significant size also took place throughout other regions of Pakistan.
In Skardu, located in the northern Gilgit Baltistan area known for its mountainous terrain and tourism, angry crowds set fire to a United Nations facility. This region typically remains calm and has a Shi’ite majority population.
Local government representative Shabbir Mir confirmed to reporters that demonstrators had assembled at the UN office in the region and destroyed the structure through arson, though no injuries occurred.
Earlier that day in Lahore, hundreds gathered near the American consulate in Pakistan’s central region. While minor altercations with law enforcement took place, no violent incidents were documented.
Eyewitness Aqeel Raza described the scene, stating: “Some of the protesters tried to damage the security gate, hundreds of yards away from the Consulate. However, police stopped them without use of force.”
In Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad, law enforcement blocked all routes to the red zone containing diplomatic buildings and the parliament, preventing vehicle and pedestrian access.
